Discord between the voters and the people they count on to represent them has been brewing for quite some time. That was clear during two recent citizens meetings at the Thomasville Municipal Auditorium.

In advance news coverage of the initial gathering last fall, we expressed hope that the “Thomasville Tea Party” might serve as the start of something larger, perhaps a movement that would expand across the state and nation. We wanted people to educate themselves and get involved in the process of government instead of being vaguely interested onlookers at the wreck our country has become.

Thankfully, it seems others are indeed following Thomasville’s lead. On Feb. 27, bolstered by an on-air rant by CNBC commentator Rick Santelli, a combined 30,000 people gathered in 40 cities to protest the federal government’s growing penchant for bailouts and so-called stimulus packages. These confiscatory policies have piled a mountain of debt on current taxpayers and several generations yet to be born.